Predatory Coaches and Demo Mills

Yin/Yang

Right there are two incendiary terms. They don’t always go hand in hand, but they rarely tell a positive story.

Oddly enough, not everyone agrees on who is or who is NOT a predatory coach. Nor do some coaches SEE themselves as “predatory”…so there is plenty of gray on this issue.

A “demo mill” is equally perceived as a pox on our profession. Why would anyone want to hurry a demo? Who would want to produce schlock? But demos are such a subjective product. Again, room for disagreement on what constitutes a “demo mill”.

Often only hindsight tells us when we are duped. The rush to have the demo that all other established voice-talent seem to have often supersedes the wisdom and patience that should be our watchword.

Also, who among us has not taken a misstep in the rush to find legitimacy? Sometimes being frozen by fear of risk mistakenly prevents us from moving forward, regardless of how misguided the direction.

Finally, I stand by the old adage that you only get one chance at making a first impression, so why would you want that first impression to be the result of a weekend coach and demo session?